Behind Every Mask
by Minami Hanazawa
Summary: #5. She was found lying in front of the school – beaten, bleeding, and on the verge of dying. Behind every mask is something we sometimes do not want to see and know. Sometimes, learning about them will only put us in peril. ArmeXLass. Others included.
1. Prologue Part 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Grand Chase. Need I say more?

**A/N:** Yes. I know I still haven't finished B.U (Bermesiah University). I coudn't resist~ This story is dedicated to **Utsuro** by the way. It's because of Utsie-chan that I became inspired to write ArmeXLass stories. More power to one of the best ArmeXLass fanfiction writers (Utsuro). And, before I forget, this story is also dedicated to the other hard-working LassXArme writers!

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><p>~ <em><strong>B<strong>e**h**i**n**d **E**v**e**r**y **M**a**s**k** ~_

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><p><strong>Rating:<strong> _T_

**Genre:** _Angst; Mystery; Romance; Adventure_

**Summary:**_ #5. She was found lying in front of the school – beaten, bleeding, and on the verge of dying. Behind every mask is something we sometimes do not want to see and know. Sometimes, learning about them will only put us in peril. ArmeXLass. Others included.  
><em>

**Extra Info:**

"Character speaking"

_Thoughts_

"_Pets speaking_"

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p><strong>Drip. Drop. Drip.<strong>

Red colored water... blood.

It was everywhere – on the floor, walls, furniture, and even on their clothes. Two bodies lay lifeless on the ground in front of them. One male, the other, female...

**Drip. Drip. Drip.**

Tears rolled down pale white cheeks as a girl bearing violet locks held a younger boy near her. _Mommy... Daddy... Why aren't you moving? _She thought, although deep inside, she knew the reason.

A sob escaped from the boy in her arms. He was shaking uncontrollably. _Mommy, daddy... You're making little brother cry... so please, wake up..._

"Onee-chan... Are m-momma and p-p-papa... o-okay?" The small, croaking voice of her younger brother asked. "I... don't know..." She replied, not knowing how to answer.

An eerie silence passed by. After a while, it was replaced by another question,

"They're... d-dead... aren't they?" She wasn't surprised when her younger brother said this as a statement rather than a question. The three-year-old was, after all, too smart for his age.

As a response to the earlier statement, she merely nodded. Seeing this gesture made by his sister, the boy sighed. He broke the hug while hesitantly stepping forward.

The purple-haired boy shivered when the blood soaked his bare feet; gagging when the aweful stench of the corpses reached his nose. "What are we going to do now, _Armana-nee-chan_?"

The aforementioned female turned her attention to the boy standing in the pool of blood. Her amethyst eyes immediately narrowed when it met another pair of the same colored eyes staring at her in amusement.

"How many times have I told you not to call me by my real name?" Armana scoffed, ignoring the question. Natsu rolled his eyes, "Will you just answer me?"

Armana fought the urge to snap at her younger brother so she just told him another, "I don't know..."

"Geez... Sometimes, I wonder if you really are older than me... or if we really are related..." Natsu shook his head diapprovingly. Armana puffed her cheeks out of annoyance.

But before she could make a witty comeback, the sound of the door slamming interrupted her. Two pairs of violet eyes widened.

_No... It can't be... The killers came back for us!_

The younger of the two immediately ran to his nee-chan's side; fear visible on his ghostly white face. Not long after that, they heard the sound of creeking stairs.

**Creak. Creak. Creak.**

Both huddled at the fathest corner of the room – away from the door.

**Creak... Cre-**

Th creaking came to a stop. Relief washed over the two for a while before they heard sounds again. This time, it was the doorknob twisting and turning.

Armana could feel Natsu tense and cower beside her, so she went in front of him. _As an older sister... I should protect my younger brother even if I, myself, is in danger of dying in his stead..._

Even though the siblings were young, both knew how to fight – whether it is by the use of magic, archery, or melee.

**Click!**

A presence was felt on the other side of the door. Armana's eyes widened. She didn't care if she knew how to fight – the enemy's too hard to handle and she knew it'll end pretty badly. _Like what happened to mommy and daddy... And besides, I can't leave little brother all alone..._

The lavender-haired female nudged Natsu, showing him somekind of card with a picture of a cat.

Natsu realized where his sister was going at. He took an identical card out and chanted a spell, "_Invectus Vos_." A bright light emanated from the two cards. When the light faded, two felines emerged.

"Nyaa~" A cat in a christmas stalking mewed as it rubbed its fur on Natsu's leg. "Nice to see you too, Nyami." He gave a small, frightened smile as he picked the cat up in his arms.

"_What's the matter, master_?" This time, it was Armana's cat. It was a light pink in color and it had a small ribbon with a bell in the middle, tied around its neck.

Armana said nothing, only staring at the door with a panicked look. Her cat, as well as Natsu and Nyami, followed her gaze.

There was a mop of silver hair poking out of the space the half-opened door provided. _No..._

Both cats glanced at their masters, then at each other. A moment later, Nyami jumped out of Natsu's arms, making a somewhat fighting stance. Luna (Armana's cat) followed suite.

Nyami and Luna were about to lunge at the door when a familiar voice was heard, "Armana... Natsu... Are you in here?"

"Uncle Theon!" They heard him sigh in relief.

Theon went inside the room, "Thank goodness you two are-" His sentence was cut when he saw the pool of blood and dead bodies. "What happened in here?"

"There were two killers saying something about momma and papa working for a guy named 'TNTS' so momma and papa needed to be killed... or something in the lines of that..." Armana stated, flinching when she thought of the bloody murder scene.

"The killers also looked about our ages... and they were wearing somekind of uniform..." Natsu added.

"Is that so?"

"Mmhm..."

Silence enveloped them.

"Can both of you help me with burrying your parents?" Theon asked after a good three minutes. Armana and Natsu nooded, dispelling the spell so that Nyami and Luna could go and rest in their respective cards.

Theon helped lift the mother, slowly walking down the stairs and out of the door. He set her down on the ground before digging up a hole and putting her genlty in. "May you rest in peace Marie..."

They did the same with the father, Kira...

"How's about making a prayer so that your parents can go to Heaven safely?" Theon asked them when he finished the burial. Armana gave a small smile,

"Our father in Heaven, Holy be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sinned against us..."

"Do not bring us to the test but deliver us from evil... Amen..." Natsu finished.

"Father, we ask through your intercession, that Marie Izumi as well as her husband, Kira Izumi rest in Heaven safely and soundly alongside you. Father, may you keep their children away from the corruption, betrayal, and hatred the world we live in is giving now..."

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p><em>Who knew this was the start of a new life... Full of lies...<em>

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><p><strong>AN:** I guess some of you will ask what happened next... Well, this is only a preview of the prologue. I cut it just incase. I'll post the full version of it once I finish Bermesiah University's 1st and 2nd arc.

**Edit:** I decided to just leave it this way~ It'll be a lot more fun~

Anyway, review please!


	2. Part 2

**Disclaimer**_**:**__ I do not own Grand Chase. Need I say more?_

**A/N:** _Whew... School's been harsh on me... Anyway, here's the second chapter. Oh, and before I forget, sorry for the many scene cuts!_

**Dedication:** _Utsuro, Yukiko-xo, Mitsukai Kanashimi, Light Heaven, darkflames13 (my friend from OZ), and all the other LassXArme FanFiction writers/ lovers._

~ _**B**__e__**h**__i__**n**__d __**E**__v__**e**__r__**y **__M__**a**__s__**k**_

**Rating:** _T_

**Genre:** _Angst; Mystery; Romance; Adventure_

**Summary:**_ #5. She was found lying in front of the school – beaten, bleeding, and on the verge of dying. Behind every mask is something we sometimes do not want to see and know. Sometimes, learning about them will only put us in peril. ArmeXLass. Others included._

**Extra Info:**

"Character speaking" (_"Character speaking" _= Flashback)

_Thoughts _(Thoughts = Flashback)

"_Pets speaking_" ("Pets speaking" = Flashback)

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

**Recap:**

_"Can both of you help me with burrying your parents?" Theon asked after a good three minutes. Armana and Natsu nooded, dispelling the spell so that Nyami and Luna could go and rest in their respective cards._

_Theon helped lift the mother, slowly walking down the stairs and out of the door. He set her down on the ground before digging up a hole and putting her gently in. "May you rest in peace Marie..."_

_They did the same with the father, Kira..._

_"How's about making a prayer so that your parents can go to Heaven safely?" Theon asked them when he finished the burial. Armana gave a small smile,_

_"Our father in Heaven, Holy be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day, our daily bread and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sinned against us..."_

_"Do not bring us to the test but deliver us from evil... Amen..." Natsu finished._

_"Father, we ask through your intercession, that Marie Izumi as well as her husband, Kira Izumi rest in Heaven safely and soundly alongside you. Father, may you keep their children away from the corruption, betrayal, and hatred the world we live in is giving now..."_

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Two figures can be seen watching the burial from over a hill. Both of which were wearing somekind of mask tainted with a reddish-brown color. Even their pure white, uniform-like clothing had the same colored stains...

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

**Flashback**

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

"_Happy Birthday, Aoi!" A man, who was seemingly in his mid 40's, exclaimed. He opened the box he was holding to reveal a decent sized cake. "Kaoru dear, can you help me with this?"_

_His wife, Kaoru, nodded. She placed Aoi (who she was currently carrying) down then proceeded to help her husband. Both parents carefully moved the cake out of the box. After that, the father, Roland, lighted the candles._

"_Make a wish!" Kaoru said. She smiled at her daughter whilst making hand gestures that said 'blow out the candles!'. Aoi giggled but nonetheless, blew the candles._

I wish... hmm... I wish that... momma, papa, and I will be together forever and be a happy family!

**What a futile wish that was...**

**-:-:-:-:-:Behind Every Mask:-:-:-:-:-**

_A noise was heard from downstairs, waking Kaoru and Roland from their slumber._

"_What was that?" Kaoru asked, alarmed and worried. She glanced at her husband who had a stoic expression though his eyes betrayed him – he was also worried of what made that sound._

_An eerie silence enveloped them._

_Roland grasped his wife's hand and squeezed it when he felt her tense beside him, "Don't worry, Kao... I'm sure it was just Aoi's clockwork pet... We both know of how it loves to play at night..." He said, trying to reassure Kaoru (and himself) though deep inside, he knew something wrong was going to happen... sooner or later..._

"_Let's just go back to sleep." Kaoru sighed but nonetheless, obliged._

**-:-:-:-:-:Behind Every Mask:-:-:-:-:-**

"_Ngh... Five more minutes..." The little, silver haired girl that was Aoi, mumbled as a small, floating robot-like creature pulled her sleeve._

_..._

_After a few minutes of continuous pulling, the creature twirled around in triumph. Aoi sat up groggily – her eyes still colsed, "Momma... it's still half past ten in the evening..."_

_..._

_Silence. Moments later, she wondered why her 'mother' wasn't giving her any reply. The sapphire-eyed child opened her eyes to see not her mother, but a strange little creature, "Killian Knyte?"_

_The aforementioned robot in turn pulled on her sleeve again; this time, more frantically. "Is something wrong, Knyte?" Aoi asked when Killian stopped pulling on her sleeve to go scratch at her door._

Something is definitely wrong here. Clockwork never acted like this before... _Then suddenly, she heard the sound of glass breaking followed by a noise – kind of like that of creaking stairs. _Wait... Creaking stairs?

_Her train of thoughts was interrupted when Knyte ushered her to stand up. This time, instead of protesting and being stubborn, she stood up and went for the door. Aoi opened the wooden door, but not so wide for the strangers to see her._

_A tall and rather skinny woman appeared from the top of the staircase. Not long after that, another one appeared; this time,it was a man. He was holding somekind of hammer... and it looked like a toy hammer... the ones babies use in playing 'carpenter' or 'Bob the builder'..._

_The woman was holding an object that resembled a rope. A whip maybe? It was too dark to be sure..._

_Azure eyes widened when the woman – who was wearing all black – looked at her direction. She stumbled backwards, her heart pounding in her chest..._ D-did she see me?

_Aoi waited for a minute before peeking outside the door to where the strangers were standing. She sighed in relief when she saw the woman no longer looking at her doorway; but, immediately tensed when she saw the whip-holder staring at her parents' door._

_She wondered why the were looking at it instead of hers. I mean, aren't they supposed to be strangers/kidnappers? Then suddenly..._

_She felt her heart skip a beat at the sudden realization. The people weren't here for her... They were here for..._

Momma and papa!

_Feeling the adrenaline rushing through her veins along with bits of courage, she stood up from the floor. But before she could kick the door open, an unknown force stopped her. Literally._

_Not a second later, a clock-like spell circle appeared underneath the platinum blonde child. Both it's big and little hand stopping at exactly eleven thirty..._

**Only a few more minutes until the show begins...**

"_Ugh! K-kny-te!" The girl tried her best to speak despite her current situation, "W-wh... what a-are y-you do...ing?" Killian only shook its head 'no' in reply._

"_B.. ut... Kill-ki...llian! My... p-pare... nts are i-in _**danger**_!" At the word 'danger', the Clockwork's spell circle faltered a little. Aoi, noticing this, took it as a chance to escape her pet's ability. She immediately summoned a card out of nowhere and retured Killian back into it._

_..._

_Opening the door quickly, she noticed that the strangers were no longer outside her parent's room, but inside. It was then she heard father yell, "What are you doing here, __**Varecais**__?" Followed by mother crying out, "I am not going to let you take my daughter as you did my son!"_

_Aoi stiffened. _I have a _brother_? But... why didn't they tell–

_Her thoughts were cut-off when she heard the female laugh – full of malice, "Oh, please. _We _didn't take him away from you. It was _you _who gave him away."_

Momma and papa...

_Her father was about to retort, but the man beat him to it, "Don't you remember that day? Don't you remember the way you didn't even bother to check on him? Don't you remember how he knew-"_

"_**Stop this nonsense!**__" Her mother's statement was ignored._

"_-about _that _secret?"_

"_He knew you were going to give him away... He knew you didn't love him... And he was right..."_

... Why?

_An eerie silence enveloped those in the room, as well as the silently sobbing child outside..._

_When none of the two parents chose to speak, the woman in black decided to break the silence, "Maybe this one will be the same as your last." With a twisted smile, she motioned for her partner to go get the child in the other room._

"_No! You can't!" Kaoru scrambled to her feet and ran across the room to where the hammer man was currently standing. Before she could fully reach him, though, the lion tamer caught her foot with the whip. She fell, face-down, on the floor._

_Roland felt rage clouding his vision when he saw the tamer mercilessly dragging his wife on the floor all the while producing another rope-like object to strike her with. "Kaoru!" He decided to use his rage..._

_Charging blindly, he forgot about the hammer man, who went back inside the room as ordered by the tamer._

"_Argh!" Shouted the father when he felt the hammer make contact with his stomach. It was then followed by a blow to his back. Roland's vision started to turn black..._

**-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-**

_Aoi covered her ears with her hands. She was sitting on the floor, back inside her room, with her eyes closed. With each passing second, the screams and shrieks got louder – making it a torture for her..._

_But, amidst all of this, she only had one thought in mind..._

They're going to give me away to these... these _**animals**_... Just like what they did to my... _brother_...

_..._

_The sound of the grand clock was heard throughout the whole house – signaling that it was already twelve midnight. No more sounds of screaming was heard. All was quiet..._

_The platinum blond opened her eyes. With a new fire burning inside her heart, she was determined... _I have to get out of here...

_..._

_It was a futile plan... because when she stepped outside of the room, she came face to face with a man wearing a clown mask. Inscribed on it was... "Ring Master..."_

_Aoi's mind became blank – flame of hope extinguished. When she looked into each of the three people's eyes, she realized... _There is nothing you can do.

**-:-:-:-:-:Behind Every Mask:-:-:-:-:-**

Hot tears were threatening to fall as the silver-haired girl snapped back to reality. _Why do I keep on remembering that day? Of all memories... it had to be that one..._

_Weird thing is that it's the only memory I have of my parents before I was captured by those... _clowns_... Also... it keeps showing up after we successfully finish a mission... which, in turn, makes me wonder if what I'm doing really is correct..._

Sighing frustratedly, Aoi wiped her eyes before a certain _someone _sees her _'crying like a baby'._ And that someone was currently eyeing three people moving out of the small house – carrying some bags with them. It was probably filled with clothes and other stuff...

The girl glanced at him. He wasn't wearing his blood-tainted mask – she noticed (maybe he took it off while she was daydreaming?). Aoi furrowed her brows when she saw him narrow his alluring azure eyes.

Following the lad's line of sight, she couln't help but smile a little. He wasn't staring at all three of them... Rather, he was only staring at the violet haired girl! She was quick to jump to conclusions,

_Ah... it looks like nii-chan's interested in that girl~_

A giggle escaped her lips. This made the boy turn to her direction – eyebrow raised in confusion. She took off her mask to clearly see (*ahem* read) his face. Her smiled widened. _Ha! I was right! He is interested in that girl!_

Aoi felt the urge to say 'I know you were staring at her this whole time' but chose not to. Instead, she said, "Oh, nothing~"

The silver haired boy rolled his eyes, muttering a "Whatever," in the process. She giggled again, though this time, didn't say anything.

...

If one would look closer at the two, you would say that they were twins... siblings – having the same silver hair color, and bright sapphire orbs... But are they really...?

...

Suddenly, there was faint glow inside their pockets. Once they pulled it out, it revealed itself to be a card of some sort – completely different from the cards they use to summon their pets. Uttering something inaudible, Aoi's card disappeared and was replaced by a humanoid figure.

The same happened with her partner's card...

"Mistress Aze..." Both children bowed their heads to show their respect for the woman in front of them.

"Ah. Good to see you two..." The woman, who was referred to as 'Mistress Aze', smiled. Shortly after that, her features darkened, "Status report?"

Aoi decided to speak first, "The mission was a success," She looked down at the grass below her feet, "But..."

"But what?" Mistress Aze raised her voice a little, making Aoi flinch. She turned to the boy, "Shiroyuki, care to explain?"

The aforementioned lad sighed, but nonetheless, spoke, "The mission was a 'success' – as my partner put it but, we couldn't clean up the scene in time... Their children saw us before we could..." Shiroyuki decided to keep quiet at this point.

He knew all too well that their Mistress can piece it all together. He also knew that look she was giving them. Both were in deep trouble... The consequences of failing a mission – even more so, get caught – were severe...

"Shiroyuki... Aoi... I am very disappointed." She scowled, "And to think that you two are my top assassins..." With that, Mistress Aze disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"I guess... we better get going... before we anger her a lot more..." Shiroyuki muttered. Aoi nodded her head before walking north. The boy following not too far behind...

**-:-:-:-:-:Behind Every Mask:-:-:-:-:-**

**A/N: **I'm so so so so sorry this took so long! As I've said from the above Author's Note, it's all because of school.

Hopefully, I can fully start writing the third chapter by tomorrow (since it's already our Christmas break).

Lastly, this wasn't beta-ed unlike my first chapter (which was re-read one too many times that I couldn't even remember) so sorry for grammatical errors. I promise to edit this when I can.

(I'm also sorry at how fast paced this chapter was. I needed to do it so that I don't need to extend the Prologue parts. Moreover, the main reason for this was to remove some details that will play a major role in future chapters. If I include it now, then, it would have been a massive spoiler.I hope you all understand.)

Please don't forget to leave a review! (Include my grammatical errors please!)

~ Hikari Y.


	3. Part 3

**Behind Every Mask [Prologue Part 3]**

**Disclaimer:**_How many times do I have to say this? I do not own Grand Chase. Neither do I own the characters from the said game. The only things I do own are my OCs and the ideas/plot._

**A/N:** _Here's chapter 3! (More like, prologue part 3…). Anyway, I hope you enjoy!_

**Dedication:** _Utsuro, Yukiko-xo, Mitsukai Kanashimi, Light Heaven, darkflames13 (my friend from OtakuZone), and all the other LassXArme Fan Fiction writers/ lovers._

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><p><strong>Rating:<strong> _T_

**Genre:** _Angst; Mystery; Romance; Adventure_

**Pairing/s:** _Arme & Lass | Yuna & Ezekiel_

**Summary:** _#5. She was found lying in front of the school – beaten, bleeding, and on the verge of dying. Behind every mask is something we sometimes do not want to see and know. Sometimes, learning about them will only put us in peril. ArmexLass. Others included._

**Extra Info:**

"Character speaking" (_"Character speaking" _= Flashback)

_Thoughts _(Thoughts = Flashback)

"_Pets speaking_" ("Pets speaking" = Flashback)

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p><strong>Recap:<strong>

"_Mistress Aze..." Both children bowed their heads to show their respect for the woman in front of them._

"_Ah. Good to see you two..." The woman, who was referred to as 'Mistress Aze', smiled. Shortly after that, her features darkened, "Status report?"_

_Aoi decided to speak first, "The mission was a success," She looked down at the grass below her feet, "But..."_

"_But what?" Mistress Aze raised her voice a little, making Aoi flinch. She turned to the boy, "Shiroyuki, care to explain?"_

_The aforementioned lad sighed, but nonetheless, spoke, "The mission was a 'success' – as my partner put it but, we couldn't clean up the scene in time... Their children saw us before we could..." Shiroyuki decided to keep quiet at this point._

_He knew all too well that their Mistress can piece it all together. He also knew that look she was giving them. Both were in deep trouble... The consequences of failing a mission were severe..._

"_Shiroyuki... Yukari... I am very disappointed." She scowled, "And to think that you two are my top assassins..." With that, Mistress Aze disappeared in a puff of smoke._

"_I guess... we better get going... before we anger her a lot more..." Shiroyuki muttered. Aoi nodded her head before walking north. The boy following not too far behind..._

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p>The silhouette of a massive structure can be seen looming over the land…<p>

"I'm… scared, big brother…" Aoi was on the verge of crying as she stared mournfully at the building meters away from them.

Shiroyuki stopped in his tracks. He sighed, fighting back the tears that were threatening to fall, and then turned around to comfort his younger counterpart. Shiroyuki hugged Aoi as tightly as he can (however, not enough to suffocate her), "I'm scared as well… but… we can't do anything. The consequences are inevitable…"

By this time, the silver haired female cried non-stop. Though, it was expected for her age considering she is only three years old.

Then suddenly…

**Creak.**

Both of the siblings tensed – averting their gaze to the doors that were just opened. A cyan haired female emerged from the dark corridors of the massive structure. She was wearing a white lab coat and glasses; "It's about time you two got here."

The azure eyed professor glared at Aoi and Shiroyuki fiercely, "Come and make haste if you do not want to receive further punishment for being tardy…" When neither of the two chose to move, Kamiki (as stated by her nameplate situated on her lab coat) sighed – apparently worn out because of the day's work. Her features softened…

"Just come inside. Aze never mentioned anything about giving you punishments." Hearing this, the children although still uncertain, went inside – Kamiki following not long after.

* * *

><p>-:-:-:-:-:<strong>Behind Every Mask<strong>:-:-:-:-:-

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><p>"We're here!" Theon (happily) exclaimed – pushing the golden door of his mansion open. The Izumi siblings gawked at what they saw… A seemingly endless hall of precious stone such as emerald, ruby, sapphire, and diamond.<p>

"Never have I thought someone could be _this_ rich!" Natsu whispered to Armana. The older of the two was still awestruck – the main reason why it took moments for the aforementioned female to compose a reply. "Neither have I…" She said, however it was barely above a whisper.

No other words were exchanged subsequent to that.

-:-:-:-:-:-

The three stopped in front of a silver door lined with amethyst gem stones.

"This is where the both of you will be staying." They were again amazed. The room was big! Heck, it can accommodate ten people!

Theon placed the bags he was carrying on the floor, "Since it's already morning, I suggest that you fix your things and yourselves. Breakfast will be served at any minute so make haste." With that, he went out of the room – closing the door behind him.

Armana and Natsu did as they were told, but not before arguing on who gets what in the room. The purple haired female got the place nearest to the door – she was attracted to the queen-sized canopied bed that was colored lavender and light pink. Natsu, on the other hand, got the place nearest to the window where another queen-sized bed was located – it also had a canopy. The only difference of the two beds was the colors. His was colored a dark purple and lavender.

-:-:-:-:-:-

"Uh… Nee-chan? I think we're lost…" Natsu stated. The two were walking around the hallways, trying to aimlessly find the dining room. Armana sighed – recalling what happened earlier.

_An all too familiar scent entered their room through the opened window. "Hey Natsu! Do you smell that?" Armana whispered, momentarily stopping her unpacking._

"_Smell wha-?" Natsu stopped in mid-sentence, realizing what his sister just whispered. "It smells like roasted chicken… and baked drillmon!"_

_Quickly finishing her task, Armana rushed out of their room – forgetting one small thing…_

_Darn it. How could I have forgotten to ask uncle where the dining room was to be found? _She thought whilst slapping a hand to her forehead. Natsu was about to make an insult but chose not to. It wasn't needed in their current situation.

Silence ensued.

…

Armana stopped in her tracks, causing Natsu to collide with her, "Why did you stop, nee-chan?" He received no reply from the female. He waved a hand in front of her face in which Armana swatted away.

Purple eyes blinked slowly, "I think I know where the dining room is." _Well… more like, my nose knows where the dining room is… Hey! That rhymes! Nose knows… okay, completely random now…_

Natsu raised a brow at her, "Uh… are you okay?" _Aside from me being random with my thoughts… yes, I am!_ She wanted to shout at him; however, she knew this will earn an earful of insults so instead, Armana nodded.

"Uh-huh… So, where is the dining room?"

"Just follow me."

-:-:-:-:-:-

The scent of food grew stronger as both siblings walked around the hallway of sapphire. Reaching the end of the said hall, they were met by a butler who was sent to go and get them. Muttering an apology for being not on time, the butler opened the door behind him and led the two to their seats.

The siblings were immediately presented several dishes – those of which they have no knowledge about and of which were their favorites. "Go and pick whatever you want. I have already eaten my part so these are all yours." Theon stated.

Their mouths watered. "Really?" Armana asked as Natsu finished three drillmon cupcakes in one bite. "Yes." Was the response she got. Beaming, she thanked her uncle for the food before getting her share of the baked drillmon Natsu was currently working on.

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:<strong>Behind Every Mask<strong>:-:-:-:-:-

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><p>"Aze… You called for me?" Kamiki said once she was inside the office. The aforementioned woman turned away from the window to face her,<p>

"The master sent us a message asking for a report." She replied – voice showing hints of urgency. Azure eyes widened, but by only a little; "Did he include what kind of report he wanted?"

"Yes. Master wanted to know if there are any improvements in our recruits… More so he wanted information regarding our best agents along with their current standings."

"Is that so?" Aze gave a curt nod. Kamiki thought of things for a moment – checking the files she was currently carrying and some things from an unknown device; "We have already completed ninety percent of the total information needed by the master…"

The dark haired woman frowned when she heard this. They were ten percent short and what's worse; the master already wanted a response. "Where can we get the remaining percentage?"

Kamiki did some calculations before speaking, "If my guess is correct… One accomplished mission would suffice for the remaining numbers."

A brief silence followed after that – giving the two some time to formulate solutions for their current ordeal.

"Are there any teams assigned on the elimination of the Varecais?"

"If I could recall it correctly, it's team one – A… Why did you ask?"

A cruel smile spread across the emerald eyed woman's face, "Bring them to me, along with Shiroyuki and Yukari."

-:-:-:-:-:-

Six people sat on the wide sofa adjacent Aze's table. They were equally divided as there are three girls and three boys…

"Now, I know all of you are wondering why I called you here." Aze paused, receiving multiple nods, "The reason behind that is you have another assignment to finish; in which requires the help of Shiroyuki and Yukari."

"The six of you are to go to the Archimedean Continent. There, you will search for a circus called… Varecai." Aze's cruel smile returned as she saw Aoi cringe and Shiroyuki grit his teeth.

"W-what… What do you want us to do there, Mistress?" Aoi managed to choke out. This made the raven haired woman's smile grow, "To eliminate them, of course…"

The sapphire eyed female gulped – this didn't go unnoticed by the other four group mates.

"Anyway, one final thing before I dismiss all of you… To be sure of your accomplishment, I want to see the Ring Master's head in front of me as soon as you enter this building."

A series of "Yes, Mistress." Was heard while the group of six filed out of the room; A moment later, silence ensued.

…

"This should be fun."

A sadistic grin was followed by a loud laugh full of malice.

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><p><strong>AN:** Yet another cliffhanger~ I like it this way so you just have to wait for the next chapter~

Review please!

- H.Y.


	4. Part 4

**Behind Every Mask [Prologue Part 4]**

**Disclaimer**_**:**__ I do not own Grand Chase. Need I say more?_

**Author's Note:** _I know, I know… It's been a long time since my last update. Well, writer's block got the best of me as well as other distracting things (I admit, I've been abandoning my writing when I started playing Grand Chase again… And, I promise never to do that for a second time considering I had to re-read the previous chapter to know where I left the cliffhanger O.o). Anyway, enough of my ranting…_

**Dedication:** _Utsuro, Yukiko-xo, Mitsukai Kanashimi, Light Heaven (though, I noticed she changed her nickname to _Insanity's Prisoner_), darkflames13 (my friend from OtakuZone), Blackwing-Darkraven, and all the other LassXArme Fan Fiction writers/ lovers._

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><p><strong>Rating:<strong>_ T_

**Pairing/s:**_ Arme Glenstid & Lass Isolet |Aoi Isolet & Natsu Glenstid_

**Genre:**_ Angst; Mystery; Romance; Adventure_

**Summary:**_ #5. She was found lying in front of the school – beaten, bleeding, and on the verge of dying. Behind every mask is something we sometimes do not want to see and know. Sometimes, learning about them will only put us in peril. ArmeXLass. Others included._

**Extra Info:**

"Character speaking" (_"Character speaking" _= Flashback)

_Thoughts _(Thoughts = Flashback)

"_Pets speaking_" ("Pets speaking" = Flashback)

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p><strong>Recap:<strong>

_Six people sat on the wide sofa adjacent Aze's table. They were equally divided as there are three girls and three boys…_

"_Now, I know all of you are wondering why I called you here." Aze paused, receiving multiple nods, "The reason behind that is you have another assignment to finish; in which requires the help of Shiroyuki and Yukari._

_The six of you are to go to the Archimedean Continent. There, you will search for a circus called… Varecai." Aze's cruel smile returned as she saw Aoi cringe and Shiroyuki grit his teeth._

"_W-what… What do you want us to do there, Mistress?" Aoi managed to choke out. This made the raven haired woman's smile grow, "To eliminate them, of course…"_

_The sapphire eyed female gulped – this didn't go unnoticed be the other four group mates._

"_Anyway, one final thing before I dismiss all of you… To be sure of your accomplishment, I want to see the Ring Master's head in front of me as soon as you enter this building."_

_A series of "Yes, Mistress," was heard while the group of six filed out of the room; A moment later, silence ensued._

…

"_This should be fun."_

_A sadistic grin was followed by a loud laugh full of malice._

* * *

><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

* * *

><p>"Is there something bothering the two of you?" A raven haired boy asked the siblings as they entered team 1 – A's room. Aoi kept her mouth shut – still probably shocked at what their mistress stated earlier. Shiroyuki was the one who made a retort,<p>

"… No." He paused, thinking over his next words, before continuing with a glare, "Plus, if there _is_ something bothering us, it's none of your business."

The others didn't seem convinced by this, though. "Oh, please. Would you stop it with the façade?" The platinum blond re-directed his glare to another boy standing across him. It went ignored as the boy continued, "It's related to that circus, am I right? _Varecai_, was it?"

Upon hearing this, Aoi willed herself not to let out even the slightest sound, however, failing dejectedly. A whimper escaped from her slightly parted, pale lips. "So my guess was correct."

Shiroyuki glanced at his younger counterpart, who was being comforted by the two – almost-forgotten – female members of the original group, before heaving a heavy sigh. He then opted to averting his gaze from Aoi (possibly to steer clear of crying himself), to look at the two other males.

The raven haired boy, sensing the forming tension in the air, gestured for them to go talk in the other room. Sapphire orbs met another pair of the same shade, somewhat sending a silent message to each other, prior to the older sibling disappearing through the doorway.

-:-:-:-:-:-

The door shut behind him with a soft 'click'. Looking around, he noticed how dark and quiet the room was – a contrast to the room next to this one. Narrowing his eyes, Shiroyuki searched for the light switch. A few moments later he found it.

The light from the fluorescent gave a dim glow – not bright enough to illuminate the entire room, but bright enough for him to see the sofa where his male companions were presently sitting. Following their example, he took a seat on the foot of the bed close to the sofa.

Silence enveloped them for the first five minutes before the raven, chose to start the conversation,

"Why were you and Yukari so affected by that name, anyway?"

The abovementioned boy took a deep breath before replying, "… We were… how should I put this… a part of that circus back then…"

It was the other boy, bearing pale cyan locks, who asked this time, "By 'part'… you mean…?"

"In a way… Yes."

"Care to enlighten us?"

Shiroyuki hesitated, but nevertheless, explained. "My parents abandoned me, back when I was still an infant. It was the Ring Master who found me lying in front of their circus. He was also the one who decided to take me in their care… or so I was told.

I didn't know it was all a lie, until the Ring Master got fed up with the kind, fatherly travesty and straightforwardly told me the truth… That they… killed my parents…"

"If you don't mind me asking… Why did they execute your mother and father?"

"The Varecais did it because they were a hindrance to the Ring Master's plan. He wanted me to become his vessel or something… I don't really know what it's called. But, mother and father didn't want to give me up, either. And so… that happened.

It was a year and a half after knowing the truth did Aoi turn up. Her story's the same as mine, only she wasn't taken as a baby. She was captured on the night of her birthday…

The event subsequent to that was when Mistress Aze saved us… and the rest, you already know."

The raven felt guilt course through his veins, whereas the cyan boy felt slight anger and bewilderment. "… We're… sorry for prodding you to tell us." The former of the two murmured. Shiroyuki, for the umpteenth time that day, sighed.

"It was our fault for acting so distressed… therefore, you shouldn't be saying sorry."

"But-"

"That's enough, Ezekiel. There's no need to dwell on the past now," He gave a sideways glance to the platinum blonde, "Isn't that right, Shiro?"

He gave no reply – a faraway look on his face as he stared at the two in front of him. Silence enveloped them once more.

…

"I think… it's time for us to rest." Ezekiel said – fatigue evident in the tone he used. This seemed to snap his companions back to reality, thus, them staring at him with confusion; "In case you forgot, we still have to finish a mission, starting tomorrow… Shiro, Riku."

"Yeah… I guess you're right." Riku stifled a yawn, feeling tired as well. "Good night, then." Standing up, he went for the door before opening it and quietly slipping out. Beyond the door where Riku disappeared, all was silent. _The girls must have fallen asleep already…_

"See you tomorrow…" With that, Shiroyuki left the room.

…

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><p>-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-<p>

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> _And that's it for this part! I know I promised there would be gore here, but I decided to just put it at the next, next chapter. There were a few confusions so I thought of clearing that out first in here._

_Also, notice that there aren't any Natsu/Armana parts in this one. The reason behind that is because this is mainly for clearing the confusion. To make up for the lack of those two characters, the next chapter will be focusing on them both._

_Anyway, I'm sorry if this is short and full of grammatical errors. I had to finish this in a rush due to certain meetings and distractions eating my time with writing. In any case, I hope you enjoyed this chapter even if it's only slight._

_Leave me a review?_

- 雪原ヒカリ/鑑原ヒカリ


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